Dustdevil

I didn't say your field personnel sucked. You didn't really tell me anything about them. I said your system sucks. And you have told us plenty about it over the last year. And you seem to agree, so obviously I wasn't slamming you or your co-workers.

Nothing wrong with that. Unless, of course, the thing has a hose bed, a pump, a tank, and some ladders. Great idea, actually. Dude, I usually respect what you have to say here, but you just lost major points on this one. WTF? We're talking about squmpers and you're talking about rehab squads. Two completely different things altogether. The latter is clearly a great, universally recommended idea. The former is just -- for lack of a better term -- retarded, which is why they are such an anomaly. Why the heck would you get all bent out of shape over that? You didn't seem to be in this post, but are you actually saying that squmpers are a real brainstorm? Did you recommend one for your volly squad, or something? I don't get it. :?

I consider you one of the smart guys around here, so I'm surprised you didn't figure it out on your own. Notice that the pop-up is addressed from http://www.sjaa.com.au/ . That's St. John's Ambulance in Australia, which means the problem is probably coming from an Aussie member's post. So, you go to page 1 and what do you see? Four posts by Timmy, who sports an Aussie flag. So, you scroll down to his fourth post at the bottom of the page, and what's that at the bottom of the post? A big red X where a photo he posted no longer shows up. Click on the properties of that red X and you see it comes from http://members.sjaa.com.au/members/homepag...g/CATSangle.jpg . Plug that link into a browser and try to go there and what happens? You get the password pop-up from SJAA. Yeah... I shoulda been a cop.

It sounds like a case of "a little knowledge is a dangerous thing" with this girl. :? I suppose she has the smallest bit of an insignificant point, but not one that is applicable to the situation you are describing. Ever get sweat in your eyes? Did it sting? Yep, it did. So I can see how she might logically (but erroneously) infer that saline would "burn" on unprotected skin. That is giving her more credit than she probably deserves though. She probably just heard this from some other moron and decided she'd wow you with her super knowledge by repeating it, without any real knowledge or education on the subject. And, of course, "burning" is not the same thing as a stinging sensation, so I hope that she was referring to that sensation, and not a physical process. But the eyes are not the same thing as skin, even damaged or interrupted skin. Consequently, a more appropriate (although still very rough) analogy to the sensation of burned skin would be that of mucous membranes. So, try this; put some saline in your mouth and tell me if it "burns" you. Of course it doesn't. And your mouth isn't even on fire to begin with. So now, with that in mind, do you really think that saline is going to burn your already burning skin? Probably not. The only skin you should be pouring water or saline on is those that are still hyperthermic or in the burning process. At that point, it is impossible to cause any more burning (or even stinging) with saline than is currently taking place (assuming the saline hasn't been sitting all day in a closed up truck in Texas summer weather). Saline or water in a bottle or a bag works equally well, so the container issue is merely a matter of personal preference and, of course, cost. Plus 5 for an intelligent question, and for asking for opinions from other sources before taking some co-worker's word as gospel!

You would have known if you had ever bothered to read the EMT City Site Rules, as you were asked to when you joined. The title you used is one that they specifically ask you not to use. Do you pay attention to the instructions and rules on the job? This makes us wonder. But, I digress. Because you seemed to genuinely want feedback on this situation to learn from, I genuinely would like to help you. So, rather than write you off as just another illiterate n00b, I gave you the benefit of the doubt and asked for clarification so that I might be able to understand the situation and give you some helpful advice. But you don't make it easy for us. Sure, I could have written half a page of answers that might be applicable, but then there is a good chance that they wouldn't have applied to your situation. Besides, you're the one looking for help. Why should we do all the work? If you still want help, there are dozens of us here ready and willing to help. But geeze... at least make an effort.

Anybody who can't understand that simple point is an idiot with a political agenda. Katz is usually an idiot himself, but he's correct on this one.

As in degreed MT? :shock: My answers to the rest of your question depends on your answer to that one. However, I will say that experience as an EMT-B is pretty much irrelevant to your ultimate success as a paramedic student or as a paramedic. I wouldn't recommend anybody waste their time on it. Most people who parrot that old, worn out line of "advice" are idiots just repeating what they heard from other idiots. There is really only one value to getting experience as an EMT-B, and that is to give you enough exposure to the field to either convince you of, or deter you from making EMS a career choice. A whole lot of people come into EMS with a wholly unrealistic idea of what it is like. If you wait until you've already invested in over two years of education before you take your first job and figure out that the field is really not going to meet your needs or expectations, then that's a terrible waste of your time and money. But, in reality, darn few people who are hell bent on being a medic are ever deterred, no matter how much reality they see. I don't think -- and most truly knowledgeable veterans would agree -- that EMT-B experience is highly recommended before enrolling in paramedic school. In fact, a great many of us would recommend against it in most cases. It has as much chance of hurting you as helping you. But, if you can actually get a part-time gig in EMS (absolutely NOT a non-emergency ambulance job) that gives you a little professional exposure before and during paramedic school, then that would be a good thing for you. It would be a really good thing if it slapped you across the face with the realisation that it is a really silly career move for you (assuming you are an actual degreed MT), lol. This nonsense about non-experienced new grad paramedics not being as good as those who were EMT-Bs before hand is just so much irrelevant BS. It's back arsewards too. So what if they come out with a little more confidence and operational knowledge? It took them time to get that edge. It will take you that same time (probably a lot less if you are an MT), so they didn't get anything done any faster than you. And only an idiot (usually basics) expects a new grad to be "golden." And the top four best medics I ever worked with in thirty-four years of practice were all new grads who went straight from EMT to medic with no experience. Only a system that sucks would even think of putting a new grad out there alone anyhow, no matter how much time he spent as a basic. I have seen WAY too many new-grad medics let loose on their own because they had EMT experience, and they usually sucked worse than those with no experience. Being a medic and being an EMT are not even close to being the same thing. And a good bit of a quality paramedic programme is spent trying to beat the EMT mentality out of you. All that so-called "experience" just gave them a false sense of confidence and bad habits. You're usually better off if you never got it in the first place. Good luck!

I'm afraid I can't make enough sense out of this situation to really comment. I can't tell whose patient it was. I can't tell what the injury was. I don't know what you were written up for. And I definitely can't tell what "HIPPA" has to do with any of this, even if there was such a thing. And minus 5 for a horrible topic title.

Whit, you could have just simply said, "my system sucks," and saved yourself three paragraphs of typing. :wink: Points for noting that, no matter what precautions you take, the job remains dangerous. Although, that applies to life in general too.

Hehe... nice one. LMAO! Disposable gloves are a "must have" for all first responders. A pocket mask is a "must have" for all first responders. PPE is a "must have" for all first responders. The only person that "must have" this thing is the ultimate wanker.

LOL! That was, admittedly, a low blow that was uncalled for. I apologise for that. Sometimes I just get carried away. :oops:

Minus 15 for quadruple posting. :?

Meh... I wouldn't dig too deeply into what the "foundation" does with the money. You might be sorely disappointed. The Texas EMS Foundation did the same thing. I dunno what they are doing with the money, but it sure isn't anything that is improving EMS in the state. So far, the only thing they have ever done, that I can tell, is get the state to issue the stupid licence plates. Not exactly a big, important victory for EMS. Love is an awful strong word. What other states have you worked in? :wink:

The name was so retarded that I will never forget it. Squmpers PLEASE, nobody bump that stupid topic back up to the top! :?

LMAO!! I was going to penalise little_red_EMT_chick 5 points for reviving a year-old topic, but after reading her post, she actually had something constructive to say that warranted it. But now, I'm afraid I can't be so kind to all the other people who have gone back to commenting on the year-old original post.

Hey, don't go hatin' on Texas. I actually like Massahoweveryouspellit, cept for the whole messed up EMS thing. And the taxes, and the politicians, and the unions, and the weather. 8)

Nah... my problem with TEMS is pretty much the same as my problem with EMS in general. I'm not really against the concept itself. I am against the whacker stereotype that is unfortunately propagated by the popular hype. Kinda like Hispanics. Just cuz I don't like most of them doesn't mean I wouldn't still marry one.

Apples and oranges. This caller very clearly called reporting a medical emergency. There was nothing unclear about it. Bottom line is, if somebody in your service area requests EMS (emphasis on the E and the M), you go. It is completely unacceptable for call-takers to make uninformed decisions on who gets it and who does not. I don't give a rat's arse about how everybody else does it, or how it's always been done. That ignorant mantra is no more valid than the old, "we ALWAYS give 15lpm, b/l 14ga and MAST pants." Times change. Shit happens, and hopefully we learn from our mistakes. This was a BIG mistake, and I have to seriously question the judgement of anybody who doesn't learn from it. I don't care whose posterior gets left dangling in the wind. And I don't care about EMTALA. None of those trump your professional duty to act duty to act. Anything less is wrong. Period. It's killing our image and it's killing people. LA County is just damn lucky that the plaintiff's attorney doesn't know more about the system. Otherwise, he'd pile papers on their arses too. And win handily. I don't care if the county got Bryan Bledsoe, Adams Cowley, and Perry Mason all on the stand for them, there simply is no way to defend this policy.

Firemonkeys are fine when they are doing what they are supposed to do (assuming they are doing it well, which isn't a given). It's only when they think they ought to be doing somebody else's job too that they are a problem.

This thread would have been more appropriately titled... Signs you are married/engaged/dating an EMS wanker....

Chuck Norris doesn't punch glass. Glass shatters itself in respect of Chuck Norris' presence.

How did I get dragged into this? All I did was post an article. :? And, of course, minus 5 to asrnj77 for double posting. :wink:

Go big or go home. That's why I trach all of my apneic patients. Higher first-time success rate. No broken teeth. Fewer gadgets to mess with. And no batteries to replace.

That whole theory is a bunch of mullarkey. It's about as valid as the firemonkey committee's "evidence" that fire-based EMS is the best way to go. My challenge still stands to anybody who can show me a documented case of somebody developing a decubitus ulcer or other treatable "skin breakdown" from a trip to the ER on a backboard. Now, if the ER is leaving them on that board for hours upon hours, that's a separate issue that has no application to EMS. What possible relevancy does SCIWORA have to immobilisation assessment in field EMS? And why would the consideration of SCIWORA lead anybody to believe that putting a c-collar on a patient, but leaving them otherwise non-immobilised was an acceptable thing to do?